Sometimes it's just easier to nose in

I always assesed the spot.

I prefered nose in. Away from the trucks and reefers. But if i wasn't backing out. Then I'd back in. And if i wasn't nosing out. No go. Most times. If i was going to ne there awhile. Then it didn't matter.

I tried to pick the easiest way. Pull flat with spread. And you get tired of arguing with boss because the pos recaps are coming apart.

 

when its extremely cold and windy its nice to have a driver nose in next to you, blocks the wind better with his trailer sticking out,

 

Really dislike drivers who nose in. For one it’s lazy, although I do understand sometimes there are reasons for doing it other than just being lazy, and two, it’s a dlck move backing out. You can’t wait for traffic to be clear because you can’t see. You basically are telling the whole truck stop “screw you guys, I’m backing out and y’all will just have to stop and wait for me”

 

I agree and disagree completely.

Confused?

I agree it's usually best to find the easiest parking spot BUT...

... nowadays my ONLY concern is to find a spot that either eliminates or greatly reduces the chance that another "professional driver" won't tear off my hood. If that means finding a place to nose in where I have plenty of room straight back, that's what it takes.

In the last three years I have been hit when I was in the sleeper berth three times. This last one was a doozy, nearly totaling my old truck. Two months lost revenue and I need to lawyer up to sue for that lost revenue. The idiot was trying to nose into a spot at the END OF THE ROW TWO SPOTS AWAY FROM ME!!! He did GOALADT (Get Out And Look At The Damage) only after sawing forward and backwards for two minutes, entangling my bumper, hood, and fender in his trailer skirt...all the while I was blasting the air horn while trying to get dressed.

Here's a word of wisdom. If you hit something then STOP. DON'T MOVE. GOALADT. Any movement can make the damage worse. Figure it out before making any movement.

 

"If you can get in, you can get out"

That's not necessarily so.
The turn radius is on the front of the vehicle.
In most cases you can wiggle out of spots, but just because you can drive around a tight corner behind a building does NOT mean you'll be able to back it back around that same corner if there's no "out" once you're in there.

If that makes no sense, think of it this way..
You swing wide right to make a tight left turn around a building to a dock.
The alley on the side of the bldg is wide enough to swing, but the back alley is narrow.
It's blocked and you have to back out.

Your trailer tires get to the corner and the tractor needs to swing wide in the back alley where it's narrow... but you can't.
All that extra room on the side does you no good coming back out.

Always.. ALWAYS !! have an exit strategy.

 

I pretty much have to back in and almost always in the back row, we usually have some overhang off the back of the trailer and I am always wanting to "protect" my cargo, Now it doesn't happen often, but if I am empty and I can find a corner spot back row, then I will always nose in, I hate listening to someone else's truck, or reefer, and without cargo I am usually short enough that I don't stick out in the row, I guess that will all change when we go to 80' ers in the fall.

 

That's a broad brush.
Takes no more time for me to back out(usually less time), than many drivers to back into a spot.
I don't mind waiting, its just plan courtesy.

 

Oh that's you. Thanks for sticking your trailer way out there and blocking the spot next to you. You are why I always take the hardest spot....I leave the easy ones for guys like you.